Olympic medalist and Norristown native Joshua Culbreath reflects on life on eve of Montco Hall of Fame induction

NORRISTOWN — When Joshua Culbreath learned he would be inducted into the Montgomery Hall of Fame, the memories of people who affected him along the way resounded in unwavering fashion. For Culbreath, 81, whose tireless life is full of acclaim and achievement, it all would be for naught without the love and support of those closest to him.

Never once did the Marine Corps veteran, Olympic medalist, Pan-American champion, world record holder claim to deserve this award; instead he merely attempted to scrape the surface of those who helped him along the way.

On Tuesday evening, alongside Sherri Retif, Sandy Nadwodny, Bill Racich and Joe Shumock, Culbreath and his esteemed cohort will be immortalized forever. In the spotlight, each inductee will be asked to conduct a speech in less than seven minutes to wrap up their individual achievement. Yet, Culbreath simply wonders how in seven minutes he can possibly thank all those involved in his life’s retrospective.

“I remember students I started with in first grade, something about their smile or the sound of their voice,” said Culbreath, who was the first Marine in active duty to make the United States Olympic team. “(Norristown) is where I was born and raised, I couldn’t ask for a better occasion than to celebrate with the people I grew up with.”

Advertisement

Culbreath was always undersized, acknowledging that he was not bestowed with the height of his six-foot father. But, under the tutelage of Vince Farina, history teacher and track coach at the Rittenhouse Junior High School, the five-foot-seven Culbreath learned of his talent in track and field.

“I learned an awful lot from him, and it stuck with me,” Culbreath said.

At Norristown Area High School, Culbreath won the PIAA state championship in the 400-meter hurdles and dominated in the Penn Relays where he was a three-time champion. He was able to earn a scholarship to attend Morgan State University wherein he studied Political Science. He was the United States Outdoor champion for three consecutive years in 1953, 1954 and 1955.

“It’s something that every athlete experiences when you have find out you have some talent and you go for what’s out there,” Culbreath said.

On the relay team, Culbreath ran with Herman Wade, Otis ‘Jet’ Johnson and Dr. James Rodgers with Culbreath acting as the anchor. The four kept their running order from sophomore year forward and to this day each member refers to each other by their order number in the relay.

“They called us ‘The Flying Four,’ and we kicked everyone’s butt,” Culbreath said. “We won every championship from Madison Square Garden to the Boston Garden.”

Iconic and pioneering African-American sportswriter Sam Lacy, who was the first black member of the Baseball Writers Association of America, dubbed the name ‘The Flying Four’ and to this day, the four remain close, Culbreath hopes and expects to see the numbers one, two and three on Tuesday night.

“We are so fortunate that we can still receive awards,” Culbreath said. “It was incredible what we had done.”

Joining the Marine Corps in 1956, Culbreath became the first member of that military branch to qualify for the U.S. Olympic team and shocked everyone but himself when, at the Melbourne Summer Olympics in 1956, he took bronze in the 400 hurdles.

The following two years were equally successful as he set world records at the Oval Grass Track in Bendigo, Australia and in Oslo, Norway. Twice at the Pan American Games, in 1955 and 1959, he took home gold.

“Going to Europe where the exposure to international competition was fantastic,” Culbreath said. “As I pursued things, I had good people, good teachers with me.”

Throughout his life, track and field stuck with Culbreath. He brags that he was one of only two runners over the age of 55 to run under one minute for the full 400 hurdles.

The other? Bill Cosby.

“I was in the service with Bill Cosby, before he was THE Bill Cosby,” Culbreath said. “He was the only Corpsman who was a track and field athlete at Quantico.”

The two became so close Cosby named Culbreath the godfather of his late son Ennis.

Culbreath spoke about how later in life the two kept running in hopes of “preserving yourself for a better life.”

“We took it to another level,” Culbreath said, who appeared twice on the Cosby Show as Cliff Huxtable’s college track rival Col. Sanford B. “Tailwind” Turner.

Once out of the Corps, Culbreath returned to Rittenhouse Middle School under the behest of Farina to teach and coach alongside the same people who had instructed him as a young man.

“They watched me grow and helped me get to that position,” Culbreath said. “I had the opportunity in an environment of friendship, love and consideration.”

Later, Culbreath earned his Master of Arts degree from Temple University and in 1988, he became the track and field coach at Central State University in Ohio, where he coached his team to 10 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics championships. Four of his athletes competed in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta — Deon Hemmings won gold in the 400 hurdles.

Now residing in Raleigh-Durham, N.C., Culbreath is anxious to greet the many people who have been such a huge part in his life, many of whom he expects to make the long journey to Norristown on Tuesday night.

“I’ve had a beautiful time,” Culbreath said. “Teammates who have retired from the Corps are going to be driving up from Baltimore, some I haven’t seen in years. It’s going to be a beautiful thing, like a homecoming with beautiful people.”

The Montgomery County Hall of Fame Banquet will be held Tuesday, November 26 at Westover Country Club at 7 p.m.